Why you shouldn't use bleach for cleaning filter socks: my point of view

[grassi]

I'm reading pretty much everywhere about the common practice to add household bleach for cleaning filter socks.

I never used it for many reason, some due to the facts, some to some suspects.

 

Some facts:

 

-Even in small amount, the Sodium hypochloride contained in the household bleach will be released in your water column.

-Sodium hypochloride (NaOCl) reacts with metals, it can release chlorine gas and many other fun stuff that you don't want to happen in your tank.

-It also causes the precipitation of minerals such as calcium carbonate which is present in good amount in our tanks mostly producing trihalomethanes which are carcinogenic

-When mixed with some sort of ammonia (that we have in our tanks) it produces chloramines which are toxic.

-NaOCl will damage the fibers and the lifespan of the sock will be shortened. We all know that this is true for natural fibers, but it is also proven that some polymer can be damaged by acid and bleach

-There are some more effects of bleach on a water solution, you can find a lot of readings online.

 

Again, it will be present in a low level on a dry filter sock, but it will be present.

 

 

The suspect:

 

When beaching a filter sock you are just getting rid of stains, but you are not really cleaning the sock better, that being done with the mechanical action of cleaning (extra rinse in your washing machine).

 

So if you are just getting rid of stains for the pleasure of your eyes while introducing potential hazard for your tank, why you should use it?

I had to prove my suspect so I decided to perform a couple of tests.

I cut a used filter sock (felt) in 2 parts and washed one with and another one without bleach. Then I prepared a section and mounted it on a few slides.

At first sight under the microscope looks like the bleached one is much more clean than the other one.

But after I stained the sample I was able to see pretty much the same amount of particles (mostly algae) in the two samples.

 

The bleach just "bleached" the algae (what a genius!!!) but it DID NOT REMOVE THEM FROM THE SOCK.

The purpose of cleaning a filter sock is to get rid, as much as we can, of the particles that are clogging it. The test I performed showed me that bleach is not helping that way. I thought that bleach was able to somehow "destroy" the particles present in the sock, helping the mechanical cleaning, but it is not, probably due to the nature of the fiber used for filter socks.

 

As a side note, most of the socks we are using in the hobby are generally used in industrial environment. They are sold in two different families, as for the cleaning. Some can be used only once, while there is a kind that can be "regenerated" and reused. This cleaning process is usually done by industrial cleaning processes, using pressure and other way for cleaning and regenerating them.

Who knows which kind we are getting... the only think I'm sure of is that we cannot bring them back to the "new" status with or without bleach, but we can get rid of some particles in a way that they can be reused in our sump, at least for a while.

[BrianB]

Good information but at $6 a sock x3 per week without cleaning it would get quite spendy. How do YOU clean your socks or what method do you recommend?

[grassi]

I was not suggesting to get rid of them each time. Just saying that if cleaned at home they will have a lifetime. I don't know how much it is and depends on the tank, but I would change them every 15/20 time you wash them at least.

I clean mines in the washing machine at hot temperature + extra rinse, and I let them dry

[NoobtoSalt]

I put my washer on sanitize and hang dry with no cleaner. This had worked out great

 

Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk

[grassi]

Yes I forgot to mention: no cleaner!!!

Maybe some softener? lol

[BrianB]

I do use bleach on a high temp. soak them for 30 minutes rinse. repeat with no bleach and rinse 3 more times to be sure bleach is gone then let them air dry. So far so good.

[reefnjunkie]

Interesting read-

I know I have filter socks that I have been using for well, almost 2 years on 2 of them.

 

My routine is to run them on a cycle that my washer calls "soak". I add a capful of bleach, it fills the drum, I use "medium" setting so the drum has about 15-20 gallons is my guess, I usually wait until I have at least 4-5 socks. Mine are the 7" by 16" 100 micron.

The soak goes through an agitate period and then just soaks until I change cycles. I usually soak for about 6-8 hours-most of the time I forget and they soak over night.

After this soak, I soak one more time for about 3 hours, then I run them on a small load wash cycle of 6 mins.

 

I've always don’t it his way, and I just thought "bleach is what you use"

 

Being I have not had any issues, it may be the fact that I "over" clean.

 

I tend to do quite a bit "to the extreme"-

 

Good info though, just thought I would share my regiment

[Rick]

Why I don't think it will make a difference.

 

 

Some facts:

 

-Even in small amount, the Sodium hypochloride contained in the household bleach will be released in your water column.

Perhaps. That does not mean it will be dangerous though. It isn't necessarily what the chemical is but rather it is what concentration of it becomes harmful.

 

-Sodium hypochloride (NaOCl) reacts with metals, it can release chlorine gas and many other fun stuff that you don't want to happen in your tank.

If you soak some metals in it then yes it can release toxic gases. Fortunately we do not need to worry about this. If we did then there would be people poisoned daily in restaurants, hospitals, etc. where chlorine bleach is used extensively for cleaning surfaces which are often metal.

 

-It also causes the precipitation of minerals such as calcium carbonate which is present in good amount in our tanks mostly producing trihalomethanes which are carcinogenic

At what percentage does this occur? How much precipitation will be caused for say 1/50,000 ppt of it? I suspect there are other things in the air we breath that will cause more precipitation than any residue left on our filter socks.

 

-When mixed with some sort of ammonia (that we have in our tanks) it produces chloramines which are toxic.

The level of ammonia that would be necessary for this to occur is much higher than what we will ever encounter in our tanks. The danger is much greater cleaning our bathrooms which have much higher concentrations of ammonia yet chlorine bleach is still the primary cleaning agent for such use.

 

-NaOCl will damage the fibers and the lifespan of the sock will be shortened. We all know that this is true for natural fibers, but it is also proven that some polymer can be damaged by acid and bleach

This may be true. It would amount to about the same as the damage to white underwear which is often bleached in every wash. Nevertheless it doesn't stop us from bleaching our underwear since we prefer that it not be stained.

 

-There are some more effects of bleach on a water solution, you can find a lot of readings online.

Just be sure to keep it on perspective. I.E. The amount of chlorine we are adding to our tank is an extremely small fraction. We contaminate our tanks more with the air we breath than the amount on a filter sock is going to. And how much more is there already in the water that is left after it goes through our RO/DI filters. (Yes, we drink this stuff everyday as it is placed into our driking water)

 

Again, it will be present in a low level on a dry filter sock, but it will be present.

As mentioned we would often be surprised at what exists in low levels in the air we breath that is much more dangerous than the low level that will exist on a filter sock. I'm only guessing however I suspect there is already more in our RO/DI water even after filtering than what a filter sock will add to it.

 

Some additional notes:

Chlorine bleach is "NOT" just used to make things white. Chlorine bleach is used is to kill bacteria as a disinfectant and it is used extensively for this purpose. To do so effectively though the concentration of it needs to be much greater than the amount we would add to our tank with residue in a filter sock. (It should be enough in our wash to kill bacteria in the filter sock though)

 

If you read the instructions on Purigen with which people are often successful at using to reduce nitrates and phosphates it actually instructs you to soak the media in chlorine bleach for 4 hours (if I recall correctly) and then soak it in regular water for a day (which is to neutralize the chlorine) to regenerate it. If bleaching our filter soaks was going to be harmful then this certainly would be too. (I used Purigen for about 6 months and never had any ill effects from regenerating it)

[CCR]

I bleach. Soak and extra rinse. Then run en through the dryer. I never have had a problem.

[ReeFit]

they why do you use bleach to restore purigen products. it removes the organics out of purigen.

[grassi]

Rick, my point was that using bleach is not gonna help much in cleaning filter socks.

You are using a chemical that is not useful for the goal you are trying to achieve.

Even in small quantities it can have some effects on a tank, unless you rinse them well as some of the members are doing.

I'll suggest to go without and save some energy and time.

 

As for the sterilization, we don't really need to sterilize something that is gonna be put in the same bacteria rich environment from where it came from, unless we are having some issues.

 

I also forgot to say that I reverse them before to wash. I mean.. put the inside part outside. I don't know the word

[grassi]

they why do you use bleach to restore purigen products. it removes the organics out of purigen.

 

I don't know. I didn't test that media. If I conducted the test well, it does not help to restore felt filter socks

[Lowman]

I wash mine twice on the whites cycle. No bleach, no cleaner, spin dry them in the washer, then hang dry them for a couple days.

[h2odvl]

I watched this the other day and thought it would go well here

[grassi]

I went ahead and I did another couple of tests.

First of all I put 3 samples of algae (which is most of the stuff trapped in your filter socks) in 3 liquids: household bleach, hydrogen peroxide and white vinegar

 

 

I let them sit for 30 minutes. The bleach turned the algae white, while the other 2 liquids left the color.

 

Then I did an empiric test, pulling apart the algae. As I imagined the bleach was the one who performed worst, followed by the vinegar and then, the winner: hydrogen peroxide*

You can try yourself

 

 

I then prepared my slides

 

And I put them under the scope

 

What I've seen under magnification confirmed my theory: bleach just remove the color from pigments (you can see at the end the solution is kinda green), while the other 2 solutions act more deeper on the algae structure. You can see how they started to break down

 

I will try to wash a filter sock after soaking it into hydrogen peroxide and blowing it with compressed air.

 

* For the usage of hydrogen peroxide, take a look at the work of Justin Bieber.

I'm testing it with great result on removing hair algae from frags. Who visited my place recently saw some sample of it. I had great results, but I'm still working on the dipping time, in order to not bleach the coral.

[Rick]

Rick, my point was that using bleach is not gonna help much in cleaning filter socks.

It does help make them white again regardless of whether they are any cleaner or not. One advantage to this is that it is easier to look at them in use and determine from the color when they need to be changed. Really bleach isn't much of a cleaner as such. It disenfects and bleaches. (Which you already verified)

 

You are using a chemical that is not useful for the goal you are trying to achieve.

Not necessarily true. If my goal is to make my clean but stained underwear white then it is the chemical to use for the particular goal I wish to achieve. In this case I'm using it to make the filter sock white again.

 

Even in small quantities it can have some effects on a tank, unless you rinse them well as some of the members are doing.

And I'm questioning the validity of this. I don't believe the quantity we are talking about is enough to have a negative impact. I also believe that the quantity involved is only a fraction of what we already put in the tanks with our RO/DI water. I don;t think anyone is just dipping them in bleach and then putting them in our tanks without rinsing them first and I most also let them dry as well. (Doing both helps to neutralize the chlorine)

 

I'll suggest to go without and save some energy and time.

This is fine as long as the reasons are valid. I.E. If someone is using it just to get the particles out then it is questionable as to the effectiveness. If they are doing so in order to get them white again then we already know that it helps. If the reason is to prevent it from harming our tanks I don't think it is a valid reason as it apparently isn't doing so.

 

As for the sterilization, we don't really need to sterilize something that is gonna be put in the same bacteria rich environment from where it came from, unless we are having some issues.

If the sock sits for any length of time outside of the water before washing then it should be sterilized as the bacteria growing on it then will be a whole different animal than what we have in our tanks.

 

I also forgot to say that I reverse them before to wash. I mean.. put the inside part outside. I don't know the word

This would be the same thing as "Turn them inside out". Everyone understands it either way though.

 

Once again, I just don't think the amounts we are talking about are enough to have a negative impact and therefore I don't think it's doing any harm. The experience of many people tends to confirm this. I do think having a filter that starts out white when it's cleaned and then gets dark as it's used has it's advantages though. I.E. We are less likely to leave one in that's too dirty which I do believe to be more harmful.

[grassi]

I know I have to change it every saturday. I don't need to see the color change. The raising water level in the sock will tell me if it need to be changed before.

I just save myself time and water not using bleach. And not using another chemical make me feel better

 

As for being armful or not, with the testing equipment we have at hand, we can't say either way. It also depends on what kind of species you are keeping.

What I'm saying is that, other than for our eyes, we are not cleaning it better in order to have a better filtration performance. I'm sure some people, me included, were thinking that using bleach was a way to clean the sock better.

[finch6013]

With bleached filter socks I need to change them once per week. With unbleached filter socks I still change them once per week. I get 7 days out of a filter sock before the water level rises to the top either way. I agree with no bleach as I have not seen a difference with it.

[grassi]

With bleached filter socks I need to change them once per week. With unbleached filter socks I still change them once per week. I get 7 days out of a filter sock before the water level rises to the top either way. I agree with no bleach as I have not seen a difference with it.

 

Yes, this is the point. I'm doing a test right now with hydrogen peroxide.

I want to see if the decomposing action of it will allow to be cleaned better and more in deep. The test suggested that, but I have no idea if the washing machine can get rid of the more soft particles stuck into the mesh

[finch6013]

I tried cleaning with the hose and high pressure spray attachment and got them very clean to the eye. They almost looked new, but it's a pain to clean them that way.

[Smann]

I did not use filter socks before now with this tank and sump I designed it with two filter socks. The main drain needs to be changed every week, the second can go a month but I uasually change it at three weeks or so since it also contains carbon

We have a HE top loader so it will not clean without soap. I keep them wet then hose them on concrete, inside out both sides twice, they come pretty clean. Then I WAS putting them in a 5 gal bucket full of water and a capfull of bleach. I read one tablespoon to a gallon for general but I was also told that "if it smells like bleach" its enough. Ive even reused the bucket a few times, The socks come out really white and the hose removes the particals, I do hose them again before letting dry.

Maybe I'll try a half cap or what would you consider a safe amount?

[OwenReefin]

Don't you wash a new tank out with bleach? Cuz thats what I am doing with my setup... I'm not screwing myself am I?

[Rick]

Don't you wash a new tank out with bleach? Cuz thats what I am doing with my setup... I'm not screwing myself am I?

No, Most of us use white vinegar. Be sure to wash it out very very well afterwards and you will probably be okay. Afterwards, I would fill it up with tap water and leave it for a few days which should neutralize any chlorine left over and then empty it back out. I would not suggest using bleach though for cleaning your tank if you haven't already done so.

[OwenReefin]

No I haven't yet, but fully intended to bleach everything, including sump and plumbing, glad I read over this thread.

[ReeFit]

i cleaned out a turtle tank once with clorox bleach and soft scrub, i rinsed that thing out what i thought was really well and let it sit for a few days. i put goldfish in the tank after i set it back up and they all died within a matter of hours. not gonna use bleach on a tank ever again.